Derwentside’s TwinTech double bid

The success of a progressive 15-year boiler renewal programme at Derwentside Homes in County Durham is calling on the best performing technology of the UK’s No.1 magnetic filtration company.

The forward-looking initiative at Derwentside is systematically refurbishing the boilers in ten of its 6,700 properties in the North West of County Durham every week on average, as the housing association looks to recoup substantial longer-term maintenance savings.

Derwentside is looking to achieve a double whammy with a longer boiler life-span with reduced system parts and repair costs in the future.

To achieve the long-term success of the central heating refurbishment, following extensive testing, the social landlord has opted for ongoing system maintenance and protection using ADEY Professional Heating Solutions’ best range performing
MagnaClean
®
TwinTech
filter. Early indications suggest the strategy is working.

The social landlord is investing £170m in modernising residences not only to meet the Decent Homes Standard, but its own, superior, Derwentside Homes Standard.

Under the scheme, close attention is being given to addressing existing circulation problems where plastic non-barrier pipework has corroded so extensively that heating systems are severely congested with magnetite sludge and non-magnetic debris, resulting in poor heating performance and boiler breakdowns.

Alan Parker, Mechanical Service Manager at Derwentside Homes, explains: “Our objective is to protect the life-span and efficiency of the boiler in every home, so that it functions properly for the resident, and brings down the cost of repairs in future. That’s a double win.

“We’re operating a 15-year boiler renewal programme, but we know that without the protection from an effective filter like
TwinTech
we can’t be confident that we’ll get 15 years of service from the new boilers we install.”

Typically, the refurbishment work is taking place on a system that is 15 years-old, retaining the existing radiators, upgrading the plastic 10mm pipework, upgrading valves, replacing the boiler and adding the dual action
TwinTech
filter, which traps magnetic and non-magnetic debris for easy removal.

Proven to remove virtually 100% of all suspended black iron oxide along with other other non-magnetic debris, the volume of sludge extracted from each heating system is a continual source of amazement and comment.

“Residents can’t believe it when they see how much sludge we pick up in the filters,” says Alan. “If anyone doubted the need to install an effective filter on their heating system, they just need to come and have a look at what we capture and remove.

“The components on modern boilers are so finely engineered that the slightest debris in the system causes problems. We wouldn’t even consider installing a new boiler without flushing and fitting a quality filter that’s going to be up to the job of protecting and prolonging the life of that boiler.”

Derwentside has incorporated the simple task of cleaning the filter into its annual gas safety checks. But, for one particularly tricky property, the filter is being cleaned every two to three months, as Alan explains. “We’ve a 30 year-old system where we’ve fitted a new boiler, but have been unable to replace the pipework that’s sealed under a concrete floor. We had no choice but to install new components onto the original distribution system, so it’s more important than ever that we do whatever we can to clean it out.

“Despite having flushed the system, we’re checking the filter every couple of months and removing substantial amounts of sludge each time.

“We’ve installed more than 1,000 filters already in properties from three-bed houses to bungalows and one-bed apartments, and I’ve no doubt that we’re experiencing fewer breakdowns and damaged pumps where a
TwinTech
has been added to the system.”

ADEY’s Area Manager for the region Mike Nevin says
TwinTech
is the perfect solution for such applications particularly where plastic pipework is an issue.

“We developed this technology and there’s no other filter on the market with the same magnetic and non-magnetic capture performance to provide the best level of protection available for heating systems.
TwinTech
is our Rolls Royce filter and in first pass tests captures more than 300g of sludge. That level of protection will bring substantial savings for Derwentside Homes over time and more and more social landlords will be following suit.”